Waking Up in Vegas
by gingaloid
Summary: They say what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas. That's all Emma can hope for when she wakes up one morning next to her new husband. Wemma at the end - had to use some Carma to get it there, though.


**A/N: I know it's slightly rushed, but it was late at night/early morning when I wrote this. A little bit of an angsty piece. Gotta love when Carl tries to butt into Wemma ;) Read and Review, please!  
><strong>

**Disclaimer: I do not own Carl Howell, Emma Pillsbury or Will Schuester. They are all property of Ryan Murphy's brain. I just like writing stories about them.**

* * *

><p><strong><em>Waking Up in Vegas<em>**

Smoke. That was the first thing that registered in Emma's mind. It smelled like cigarette smoke in her room. She groaned slightly and rolled over, taking a breath and looking up at the ceiling. Rubbing a hand over her face, she opened her eyes and froze. Something was wrong. That wasn't her ceiling. Where was the pristine, white fan? She swallowed and her hand fell on top of the duvet cover. This wasn't her soft bedding with the lace trim. She flew into sitting position, looking around the room frantically.

The room Emma was in was a mess and so unfamiliar. There were clothes strewn everywhere and empty bottles all over the place. She cleared her throat and groaned as it itched as if she were getting sick. Swallowing again, she looked at the clock before registering that there was someone next to her. Very slowly, she turned her head and looked at the sleeping figure.

His face was facing the opposite direction, but his hair gave away his identity. The wavy, deep black locks were flowing every which direction. His toned, olive back rising and falling gently as he breathed, Emma poked him awkwardly with one of her index fingers and he grunted. "Five more minutes…" As she pulled her hand away, a glint caught her eye and she froze, looking down at her left hand. An unfamiliar ring sat there with four diamonds gracing the top, unlike the usual ring held there with one solitary, glimmering stone. Gasping, Emma flew out of bed, blushing deeply when realizing she was wearing a skimpy slip. She ripped the sheets off the bed and wrapped them around her before yelling.

"CARL! CARL WAKE UP!"

The man groaned and flipped over. He sat up sleepily and ran a hand through his hair, yawning as he looked at the clock. "Ems, babe. It's six-thirty nine. You do realize this, don't you?"

Emma gulped. "C-carl, what are you – what are we – oh my God."

The man wiggled his eyebrows and crawled across the bed, sitting on the edge of it and kissing Emma gently on the lips. "Good morning, wife of mine." He pecked her lips again as a grin unraveled over his lips, revealing his pearly whites.

Emma froze as he kissed her. No. No, this isn't right. No, she couldn't be m-married to – no!

"C-carl?" Her voice came out in a whisper as she choked back a sob, the tears already spilling from her eyes. "W-what happened last night?"

The man's hands began roaming the body of the woman before him, trailing down her sides, resting momentarily on her hips before smacking her ass lightly and kissing her again.

"What, you don't remember?"

All the woman could do was shake her head, thinking of Will as Carl began his story.

XxXxX

_Carl Howell was checked into the Bellagio in Las Vegas, Nevada. A break was what he needed. Things at his practice were going well, he'd received a few awards recently, and he was patenting a tooth bleaching substance that could be added to food in order to whiten while eating. Everything was going great, but he had to get out of Ohio. It was killing him, staying in one place, and having no time away in the past two years since annulling his marriage with the beautiful Emma Pillsbury._

_So there he was, sitting pool-side in the middle of a hot July, sipping a margarita when a flash of brilliant hair and a familiar giggle had his head spinning. Very quickly, his head rotated toward the sound and the flash, and he almost dropped his drink in the process of giving himself whiplash. There, in the Bellagio pool, as Emma Pillsbury. Not just Emma, though. Oh, no. She was there with the man who caused her to break his heart into a thousand pieces. Will Schuester._

_Carl sat for a moment, in pure disbelief that the reason he left Ohio had actually followed him out of the state. He watched as the beautiful redhead was hoisted out of the pool by her waist, her hands resting on the shoulders of the man clutching her middle. She was giggling and looking down at him with all the love in the world._

"_Don't do it, Will!" _

_He heard her warning the man as he repeatedly pretended he was going to drop her into the water, a devilish smirk on his face. The woman screamed as he finally "dropped" her, catching her at the last minute and holding her close to him. Her arms wrapped around his neck and her legs around his middle. She kissed his lips gently a few times, and Carl saw her mouth an "I love you" to the man._

_Ignoring the burning jealousy that was building in him, watching Will Schuester hold so close to him the woman who still had his heart, Carl set his drink down and walked over to the edge of the pool where Will and Emma were. _

"_Well if it isn't Will and Emma," he said, doing his best to hide the bitter tone in his voice._

"_C-carl!" Emma exclaimed, Bambi eyes widening to a whole new level of openness, "H-how, uhm, wow, how are you?"_

_Will rolled his eyes and nodded once, not wanting to acknowledge the dentist before them._

_Carl shrugged, glaring at Will momentarily before addressing Emma again as he sat on the edge, feet dangling in the water. _

"_Same ol', same ol'," he nodded, "How about you, Ems?"_

_Emma looked at Will and bit her lip, giving him a small smile before turning back to Carl, "We're doing wonderfully, thank you. What a coincidence that we should be here at the same time!"_

"_Yeah, crazy…" Will trailed off. He still didn't like Carl, even though it had been a while since interacting with the man. Something about him just set him on edge._

"_Yeah, I needed a break from Ohio," Carl nodded, gesturing at the hotel where he and Emma had come after they were married, "Somewhere with good memories."_

_Emma bit her lip harder and frowned slightly, remembering suddenly why the hotel had seemed so familiar when she and Will checked in. Her wedding to Carl, of course. She cleared her throat and nodded. "We, uhm, Will's here on a teaching conference. I came with him, so that's, yeah. We're here on, uhm, business."_

_Will looked between Carl and Emma and sighed. He knew this had to be somewhat awkward for Emma, so he decided to give her space, setting her down. "I'm going to go dry off." He nodded and kissed her cheek gently, then her temple, before swimming over to the stairs and getting out, walking over to dry off._

_Emma watching him, sighing. And he's all mine, she thought, a small smile on her face. She turned to Carl and smiled a bit wider, awkwardness setting in more. Her hands played with the water, which just reached the bottom of her bikini top._

_Carl watched the woman before him, completely puzzled. He could never get her in a bikini when they were together, or wear her hair in a messy ponytail as it was now, strands falling out all over the place onto her bare, freckled shoulders. He longed to run his fingers through her hair again, kiss each of those freckles, steal her heart the way Will stole hers. _

_And then an idea struck him._

"_So, there's a mixer tonight in one of the casinos. What do you say you and Will join me?"_

"_Oh, uhm…" the redhead licked her lips quickly, shaking her head slightly, "W-will's got some paperwork to do tonight before his, uhm, final meeting tomorrow. W-we can't."_

"_Ah, right. Well, if Will's the one working, why can't you come out to play? Come on, Ems. It'll be fun. Drink a little, play a few games, and your precious William can prepare for his meeting tomorrow without you interrupting him. It's a win-win situation."_

"_I, uhm, I don't think that's the best, ah, idea…" She bit her lip. She really didn't think it would be good to be alone with Carl after everything that had happened to them, but he did make a valid point. Will would be doing paperwork all night and preparing a speech to give. Emma would be sitting in bed watching the television._

"_Please, Em?"_

_Puppy-dog eyes. Dammit. Carl and Will always knew how to make her falter._

"_Fine, I'll go. Pick me up at my room – 2732 around eight." _

_She nodded and gave him a small wave, turning and going over to Will, taking a towel from him and kissing him gently._

_**8 PM**_

_When eight o'clock rolled around, Emma was sitting in her room with Will. It was so silent a pin could be heard dropping. She and Will had argued about her going to see Carl, even though she swore it was completely innocent. They'd yelled for hours, and Emma had cried many tears before Will gave into her, kissing her tears away and apologizing. He'd told her he trusted her, but not Carl, and that if she really felt it would be okay to see him, he wouldn't stand in her way._

_But she knew he still didn't want her going._

_There was a knock on the door and Emma stood, opening it, a smile crossing her face._

"_Hey."_

"_Hey, Ems."_

_They stared at each other for a moment before Emma held up a finger. She walked over to Will and stood next to him, waiting for him to look up and kiss her. When he didn't, she sighed and kissed his cheek while he finished the paperwork._

"_I love you," she said, walking toward the door._

_Silence._

"_Will, I said I love you."_

"_Yep. Love you, too."_

_Emma frowned, shaking her head and following Carl out of the room and to the elevator._

"_You look great, Emma."_

_She couldn't help but smile._

"_Thank you."_

_**10 PM**_

_Emma and Carl had been at the casino for about two hours now, and Carl had wasted zero time in starting to get alcohol in Emma. They'd been drunk together once when they were married, and he knew that was the fastest way to get her to relax and not worry._

_Emma was a lightweight, and after a few drinks, she'd been feeling tipsy. Now, though, she was borderline sloppy, her words slurring as she sat at the bar with Carl._

"_Y'know, I luvim, I do. Bu' he juss can' see tha' you an I didn' wok the firss time, an he ge's so maaaad!" She took another sip of her drink and looked at Carl._

"_I mean, he luvsmeandstuff, but, juss, I dunno." She ran a hand over her face, pushing her ginger locks out of her hair, "He pissesme off, becuz I wanim an I luvim and I wonner why he loves me sumtime."_

_The woman took a breath and fanned her face, "Izzhot inere."_

_Carl smirked and took another sip of his drink, looking to the bar tender. He wasn't nearly as drunk as Emma. In fact, he'd been drinking water most of the night and telling her it was a gin and tonic. "Another one for my lady," he said and smiled at her, giving her a wink._

_She giggled._

"_I remmemer the lastime we're here."_

_She took her drink from the bartender and leaned toward him. "You are so bee-yoo-tiful!"_

_She burped slightly and her eyes widened. "That wasn' purdy."_

_She took the a mini umbrella from the counter and held it above her head. "I'm thinkin' iss gonna rain. RAAAAAIN! ISSS GONNNA RAAAAAAIN ON MEEEEEEEE~!"_

_Carl sat there, laughing at the woman before him. It entertained him that he didn't have to say anything and Emma was entertaining herself just fine. She downed her drink very quickly before standing up._

"_I think I wanna–" _

_Her ankle gave out and she fell to the floor. Carl laughed harder as she stood. "Immokay, Immalright. I juss decided to take a small nap for a secunther."_

_She raised her hands up and did a little jump._

"_WOOHOO! VEGAS, YOU'RE SO PURDY!"_

_She winked at Carl before starting to dance alone in the bar, her worries about Will previously forgotten._

_**1 AM**_

_Emma spilled out of the taxi cab she and Carl had taken and started walking. She had no idea where they were, and she was drunk off of her ass. Drunk Emma seemed to forget about OCD and germs and relationships. Drunk Emma just wanted to have fun. _

"_You, madame, are doin SUCH A SSSERVICE TO THIS COUNTRY, ANNITHANKYOU," she yelled at a hooker as she walked by Carl and Emma on the street._

_He quickly grabbed Emma's hand and looked at her. "Hey. Remember what I said in the car?"_

_Emma nodded. "You love me. You always have, an Will can' change tha' and you juss wanna prove it to me."_

_Carl nodded._

"_Then I said, putcher money where yer mouth iz."_

_Her eyes widened and she swallowed, trying to stay standing straight and focus on the Carl, swirling before her._

_Carl nodded. "And I plan to do exactly that. Now, when we go in there, all you have to remember to say is 'I do.' Can you remember that?"_

"_I do."_

_She giggled looking at him, "It works both ways! I do and I do remember that! I can becuz I am awesome."_

_Carl kissed her forehead and led her into the 24-hour chapel, sitting her down and going over to talk to the woman behind the desk._

_Emma looked around. Something in her drunken mind told her this wasn't right. That she had to get back to Will. She was too inebriated, though, to put together what was happening, and her common sense was failing her terribly. Her phone rang and she looked down at it, the name WILL flashing across the screen. She opened it and spoke with a smile on her face. _

"_Hi, baby! Didja kno tha' you are sexy as all geddout?"_

_Carl rushed over and took the phone from Emma, speaking into it._

"_Schuester? Hey, Carl. Yes, she's fine. No, she's not drunk. Look, we're in the middle of a game here, I'll have her call you later. Don't wait up."_

_He hung up the phone and pocketed it. "I'll hold onto this for you, Emma."_

_She smiled at him gratefully. _

"_Thank you. If he calls again, juss say I luvim." She nodded and Carl took her hand, beckoning for her to stand and she did just that, following him through two double doors as the Wedding March played._

_After the "ceremony," Carl took Emma back to the Bellagio and to his room. He handed her a skimpy outfit he'd purchased for her earlier in the day and she put it on before laying on the bed and crawling under the covers, yawning._

_Carl crawled in next to her and wrapped his arms around her tightly, kissing her cheek and smiling to himself at finally having won Emma just as unfairly as Will did._

"_Goodnight, Ems."_

_But she didn't hear him. Emma was already passed out cold, sleeping in the arms of her husband._

XxXxX

Emma choked back a sob as Carl recounted the tale. The more he spoke, the more the previous night flooded back to her. That explained her headache. She wiped the tears from her face and pulled away from him. She didn't know which hurt more: the fact that she married Carl _again_, or the fact that he used her as a pawn in some sick game of possession.

She bit her lip as it trembled and gripped the sheet tighter around herself.

"Y-you…b-but Will and I…eng-gaged!" She choked out, beginning to sob before him, her heart shattering into a million pieces.

"Not anymore, babe. You're married to me now."

Emma shook her head, in pure disbelief of what she'd done.

She glared at him.

"M-my phone."

He pointed to the dresser and Emma walked over, opening the screen. Fifty-three messages. All from Will.

She sat down in the chair and called her voicemail, listening to all of them. Tears streamed down her face as the worried voice of her fiancé consistently begged for her to call him back, apologizing for not kissing her good-bye, repeatedly telling her that he loved her, crying out apologies for having not told her a proper 'I love you' before she left. Emma let out a cry as his final message came to a close. A choked up Will telling her, "_It's clear you want him. I'm sorry I wasn't good enough again._"

She closed the phone and sat there, crying. She'd been listening to messages for over an hour. She didn't know what to do.

Standing, she dropped the sheet and gripped her phone, glaring at Carl. She walked over to him and slapped him across the face.

"YOU ARROGANT ASSHOLE. IS THAT ALL I AM TO YOU? A GAME? YOU USEDME LAST NIGHT, AND YOU BROKE MY FIANCE'S HEART. AND FOR WHAT? SO YOU CAN FEEL GOOD ABOUT YOURSELF?"

She smacked him again and ran to the door, yanking it open and running to the elevator, hitting the call button repeatedly and stepping in when it came too slowly. She pressed the button for her floor and tapped her bare feet anxiously as the elevator climbed higher and higher.

Reaching her floor, she flew out and to her room with Will, tears streaming from her face. She knocked hurriedly, practically banging on the door, praying he hadn't left for his conference yet.

The door opened slowly and a very tired looking Will stood at the door, his eyes taking in the tear-drenched face of his fiancée as she stood before him, crying her soul out.

"Emma, what–"

"I m-m-married C-Carl. Ag-gain!"

She practically screamed the words, trying to get them out through her sobs, which just intensified as she saw the look on Will's face as it fell. He stared at her, looking as if the world had just collapsed around him, and she could practically hear his heart breaking in his chest.

He looked at her and shook his head, torn between killing Carl and comforting Emma. He opened the door wider and let her in, closing the door behind them.

Emma sat on the bed and Will sat next to her, lacing their fingers together. She gulped and retold the story to Will, just as Carl had told her. It took a while as she was choking on sobs and the tearing sensation in her chest. It took her a while before realizing that tearing sensation was her own heart breaking into a thousand shredded pieces. She explained that she just got his messages today and that they killed her to listen to. All the while, Will sat, his eyes trained on the floor as Emma spoke. When he said nothing for ten minutes after Emma finished, Emma squeezed his hand.

"Say something."

"What do you want me to say, Emma? That it's okay? That I forgive you for marrying a man TWO MONTHS BEFORE OUR OWN WEDDING? THAT I FORGIVE YOU FOR BREAKING MY HEART _AGAIN_ BY MARRYING CARL _AGAIN_?"

Emma bit her lip and shook her head, "I d-don't know. I w-wasn't thinking, I –"

"NO," he cut her off, "YOU WEREN'T THINKING, EMMA. ABOUT ME, OR US. YOU WEREN'T THINKING AT ALL!"

She covered her face and sat on the bed, crying as the love of her life yelled at her. She couldn't even be angry with him, because she deserved it. The bed felt lighter and Emma realized that Will was standing, grabbing his things from around the room and throwing them into his bag.

"W-what are you doing?"

"Leaving. I have a conference soon."

"I thought I was g-going with you?" She asked weakly.

"Not anymore. I need to think, and it's best if you aren't there when I do."

"Th-think?"

She didn't like the sound of that.

"Think. About me. About you. About us and whether or not I want to help you get out of this. Whether or not I want to marry a woman who has so little regard for the man who loves her, that she would _twice_ up and marry a man in Vegas on the spur of the moment. I think it's best if you don't contact me until I'm ready."

And with that, he was gone.

Emma lay in the deafeningly empty room, curled up on the bed. She cried for hours, crying out her soul, her thoughts, tears streaming down her face.

When the tears finally stopped, she sat up, feeling like her world was over. The clock read 5:30 pm and she wondered how she'd been crying in this room for the past 8 hours. Would she ever see Will again? Probably not. She was stuck with Carl, she knew it.

Swallowing, she stood and reached down, picking up her phone that had fallen on the floor. The screen flashed and she opened it.

1 NEW VOICE MESSAGE: MY SUNSHINE

Emma bit her lip and pressed dial, sitting on the edge of the bed as Will's choked out voice came through the speaker.

"_Hi, sweetie. I'm so sorry for how I left you this morning. I was hurt and angry, and I just couldn't believe that this would happen again. That you would do this to me again. I got a text from Carl in the middle of my meeting saying 'Won again, Schuester.'" _He sighed into the phone, "_Baby, I love you. I love you so much that it kills me, and I am so sorry for leaving you how I did, for not comforting you; for acting like I didn't care and that I was going to leave you with Carl forever. Of course I'd break a few hours later and crave to hear your voice again. We're going to fix this, Emma. We're going to get through this. Because I love you and you love me. Carl or no Carl, we're meant for each other. My meeting's running a little late, so I won't be back at the hotel until seven. Please be there when I return. I love you, Emma. I love you, I love you."_

Emma saved the message and closed her phone. New tears were on her cheeks, but so was a small smile.

"That's why I love you," she spoke out loud, "Because you'll always fix me."

XxXxX

_**TWO MONTHS LATER**_

Emma lay back in her wedding bed and looked over at her husband. They'd just been together, really together for the first time. Emma's first time. She smiled over at him nervously and pushed her hair out of her face, taking a deep breath once she'd come down from her high.

Will smiled over at Emma and wrapped his arms around her, kissing her forehead.

"Will?" she asked nervously.

"Em, you were great. I swear, that's the most amazing experience I've ever had. I love you." He nuzzled his face into her hair.,

Emma laughed out shakily and shook her head.

"Thanks, but, uhm. No, not that," she began. She turned her head and looked at him, tears in her eyes. "Thank you."

He looked at her, puzzled as she burst into tears and buried her face in his naked chest. He stroked her hair and kissed her head. "Shhh. Sweetie, what's wrong?"

Emma shook her head. "Just, thank you. For getting me out of that. Out of a life that I hated with Carl again. Thank you for taking me back and not putting off our wedding any longer." She let out another sob and Will chuckled slightly.

"Emma, I love you. I have always loved you, and despite what I said when I walked out on you, whether or not I should marry you has never crossed my mind. Marrying you has always been what should happen. Nothing would ever change that."

Emma nodded and he pulled back to look at her.

"Now, Mrs. Schuester," he said, a smile on his face, "No more tears from my beautiful wife."

He leaned down and kissed her tears away. She sniffled and nodded, smiling at her new name.

"I love you, Will. So much. And I love my name," She smiled gently and kissed his nose.

"Emma Schuester," he kissed her lips, "Mrs. Schuester," he kissed her nose, "Mrs. Emma Schuester," he kissed each of her cheeks, "I love your name, too."

He kissed her again, passionately, and she kissed him back eagerly. She turned over, pressing her back against his chest, and he wrapped his arms around her, holding her tight. His head fell to rest on hers, his chin brushing her shoulder.

"I love you, my sweet, sweet wife," he whispered, kissing her cheek before snuggling closer to her and drifting off to sleep.

Emma smiled.

"I love you, my wonderful husband."

She lay awake for a while, still not fully believing that she was married to Will. That he forgave her. That he still loved her. She'd forever feel regret for what she did that night in Vegas – both times. But she had Will now, and he had her. Forever.


End file.
